Container with snap-in plastic nozzle



Jan. 25, 1966 R. s. SCHULTZ CONTAINER WITH SNAP-IN PLASTIC NOZZLE 5Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Oct. 10, 1962 I BY f a W QV Arroe/vzrs Jan. 25,1966 R. s. SCHULTZ 3,231,156

CONTAINER WITH SNAP-IN PLASTIC NOZZLE Filed Oct. 10, 1962 3 Sheets-Sheet2 Jig .7

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05597 572 /75 \SCf/UL TZ BY @,Z %6'/ZA ATTORNEYS Jan. 25, 1966 R. s.SCHULTZ CONTAINER WITH SNAP-IN PLASTIC NOZZLE 3 Sheets-Sheet 5 FiledOct. 10, 1962 INVENTOR. 055 7 57f'P/9f/1/ saw/172" United States Patent3,231,156 CONTAINER WITH SN AP-IN PLASTIC NGZZLE Robert Stephen Schultz,Somerville, N.J., assignor to AmericanCan Company, New York, N.Y., acorporation of New Jersey Filed Oct. 10, 1962, Ser. No. 229,675 4Claims. (Cl. 222-569) This application is a continuation-in-part of mycopending application, Serial No. 860,402 filed December 18, 1959.

This invention relates to containers including snap-in plastic nozzlesand especially to collapsible containers of soft metal provided withnozzle inserts of slightly flexible thermoplastic material.

For certain purposes it is desirable to provide metal collapsiblecontainers in "which the nozzles are of other materials, especiallywhere the product to be dispensed is a paste composed of ingredientswhich may pick up an objectionable color or cast from metal as it isextruded through the neck, or where the neck is used as an applicatorfor depositing the product on a body part as in the case of an eyeointment.

Such nozzleshave been effectively constructed by molding .them of.plastic material with a flange at the base, placing the flange in asuitable prepared seat on the container, and .then swaging or spinningportions of the container metal into locking position about the flangeto hold the nozzle in place. While the results of this procedure areeltectiveinsofar as the container produced is concerned, the extramechanical operations required to assemble the parts are ratherexpensive and methods have been sought to avoid this.

In one instance there has been developed a plastic nozzle which can beassembled to the container by merely pushing the nozzle into place sothat it snaps into operat'ive position and is firmly held to thecontainer neck. However, the design of this container and nozzle aresuch that the neck portion of the nozzle requires a slight stretching inorder to place the nozzle in the container. This gives, in practice, avery firm mounting for the nozzle, but requires rather high forces inplacement of the nozzle, and furthermore necessitates constructing thenozzle with a stepped bore which must not only be carefully fit onto aninserting tool for assembly, but which requires a slightly larger nozzlefor a given size of exit passage, as well as necessitating criticalcontrol of the nozzle wall thickness so as to keep the insertingpressure within easily operable range.

The present invention has for its object the provision of a combinationbetween a container and a plastic nozzle therefor so arranged that thenozzle can be readily snapped into place with merely a straight pushingaction on one end of the nozzle structure without the necessity forfirst fitting the nozzle bore onto an assembly tool, but which stillprovides an adequately firm connection between the container and nozzlefor all purposes.

It is a feature of the present invention that the resilient action whichholds the nozzle in place comes about from the deflection either in anaxial or radial direction of a flange at one end of the nozzle, and thatit is mainly the periphery of the flange which is deflected by flexingof the flange Wall so that the degree of force required in placement isquite readily controlled without the necessity for maintainingexcessively close tolerances on the nozzle wall thickness.

It is afeature of the invention in one of the forms thereof that thecontainer neck is formed with integral threads for reception of the capthreads, so that the cap is not retained by the nozzle, and the questionof whether the possibility of nozzle rotatability might interfere withthe removability of a tight cap is avoided.

I ice It is also a feature of the present invention that in those caseswhere the nozzle is provided with threads to receive the cap threads,the container bodypart and the nozzle part are provided with an improvedmechanical interlock whichprecludes nozzle rotation so that the lattercannot interfere with removal of a tight cap.

It is a further feature .of the invention that the mechanical interlockdesign employed is one which is not only readily moldable on the plasticnozzle part, but is also readily obtainable on the container body partsimultaneously with the impact extrusion step commonly used to constructcollapsible metallic tubes.

Additional objects, features and advantages will appear hereinafter asthe description proceeds.

In the drawings, wherein like numerals are used to designate like partsthroughout the same:

FIGURE 1 is a side elevation .of one common type of container, namelythe collapsible metal tube type, to which the present invention isapplicable;

FIGUREZ is an enlarged axial section of a neck portionof the containerof FIGURE 1 Withthe cap removed;

ing the samein relaxed position before insertion;

FIGURE 4 .is an axial section similar to FIGURE 2,

but illustrating an alternate form of the invention;

FIGURE 5 is a transverse. section taken on line '5- 5 of FIGURE 4;

FIGURE 6 is an enlarged detail fragmentary section taken in the samedirection as FIGURE 5;

FIGURE 7 is an axial section similar to FIGUREQ, but showing stillanother alternate form .of the invention;

FIGURE 8 is a transverse section taken on line'8--8 of FIGURE 7;

FIGURE 9 is an axial section showing another embodiment of theinvention;

FIGURE 10 is a transverse fragmentary section taken generally along theline Ill-1ii of FIGURE 9; and

FIGURE 11 is a view like FIGURE 9, but illustrating another form whichthe present invention may take.

Referring now to the drawings, and firstto FIGUREI thereof, the presentinvention is concerned with containers 11 made up of two separate partswhich may be, but are not necessarily, of separate materials. In theform shown, the container body "13 is a collapsible metal tube such asare commonly manufactured lhy impact extrusion from lead, tin andaluminum. The container is completed by:a nozzle insert 15 of relativelystifll but somewhat resilient thermoplastic material, eg,.polyetlhylene, or other material having similar mechanical properties.As shown in FIGURE 2,the body 13 has a conical breast l7 and anintegrally-formed threaded neck 19 to which may be threadedly attachedthe cap 21 (FIGURE 1), the breast and neck fonrning the end member ofthe container. While the container is shown in FIGURE 1 as being incompletely filled 'andlclosed form, heing sealed at the lower end bycrimping or by a clip 23, it wil be understood that \during themanipulations involved in inserting the nozzle 15, the tube is still inincomplete condition with the lower end open.

The nozzle 15 comprises a main section. 25 which is designed to fitclosely but non-b indingly within the neck 19 of the container body, anose piece 27, a base flange 2 and a radial retaining rib 31 between themain section and the nose piece. As is seen in FIGURE 3, the flange 29is flat when in relaxed condition, and the distance between the flange29 and rib 31, designated X in FIGURE 3, bears a particular relationshipto the container dimension. As can be seen in FIGURE 2, this dimension Xis made just sufliciently great that when the nozzle is seated, theperiphery Olf flange 29 is deflected significantly in an axial directionby the breast 17 02E the container so as to maintain a firm springpressure keeping the nozzle seated at all times. In other words, theaxial distance X between the rib 31 and relaxed flange 29 measured atthe radius of flange contact, is less than the axial distance Y betweenthe top of the container body neck and the under surface of thecontainer breast, measured at the radius of flange contact.

While there is here particularly shown and described an arangementwherein the breast 17 is conical and the flange 29 is flat, it will ofcourse be understood that various combinations of non-matching surfacescan be employed for this purpose. For example, the breast 17 can be flatand the flange 29 convex in its lower aspect, or the breast 17 can beeven more steeply conical and the flange somewhat less steep and concavein its lower aspect.

From the foregoing it can be seen that all that is necessary to installthe nozzle in the container body 13 is to insert the nozzle, nose first,through the open bottom of the container body and project it through theneck 19 from the inside out. Then a firm push at the center of thenozzle overcomes the interference fit between the rib 31 and the neck 19and forces the former through to its ultimate locked position as shownin FIGURE 2. While it is not essential, the neck 19 may, if desired, beformed with a slight internal taper to assist in leading the rib 31therethrough.

Attention is also called to the fact that the neck and breast portionsof the container are preferably not contoured to fit snugly against theflange in deflected position but are designed to leave a small space 33adjacent the main body of the nozzle. This simplifies driving the nozzlehome and allows suflicient overtravel to insure full locking expansionof rib 31 before the assembly pressure is withdrawn.

When the parts are assembled as shown in FIGURE 2, the cap 21 can bethreaded on the threads of neck 19, and regardless of whether the threadfit is tight or not, the independence of the nozzle from the threadassures that cap removal cannot be interfered with by any possibeltendency on the nozzle to turn within the neck 19.

In FIGURES 4 to 6 there is shown another form of the present inventionrather similar to the form shown in FIGURES 1 and 2, but differingtherefrom in that the neck of the container body is unth-readed and thethreads complementing those in the cap 21 are formed instead on the nosepiece of the nozzle. Here the container 111 includes a body designatedas 113 and has a breast 117 and an unthreaded neck 119. The nozzle 115has a nose portion 127 including a threaded section 128, a main bodyportion 125 within the neck 119, a flange 129, and a locking rib 131.The parts are generally similar to those described for FIGURES 2 and 3and act in generally similar fashion. It should be noted, however, thatthe flange 129, instead of having a circular periphery, is constructedwith a non-circular periphery designed for matching with a correspondingnon circular shape formed near the shoulder of the container 119 so asto constitute a non-rotary connection between the two parts. Theconfiguration considered most practical at present is a fine sawtoothshape with teeth 135 being formed on the flange 129 during molding ofnozzle 115, and teeth 137 being formed inside the shoulder of body 113by a properly shaped impact extrusion punch. The fine tooth outlineassures easy meshing without requiring intentional orientation, and ifdesired the upper corners of the teeth 135 may even have a slopingprofile to assist in camming the teeth readily into mesh. As can be seenin FIGURE 6, the teeth 135 of the flange 129 are preferably placed at anappreciably smaller radius than the teeth 137 to provide a free meshingaction without requiring pressure to effect the meshing fit. From theforegoing it can be seen that when the parts are assembled, the nozzle115 is locked against rotation with respect to the body 113 so thatthere is no chance for the nozzle to turn in case there should be anunduly tight fit between the cap and the threads 128.

In the form of the invention shown in FIGURES 7 and 8 there is acontainer 211 consisting of a body 213 which has a breast 217 and anunthreaded neck 219. The nozzle 215 has a nose portion 227 including athreaded section 228, a main body portion 225 within the neck 219",e anda flange 229 which in this instance is positioned be tween the main bodyportion 225 and the nose portion 227.

This form of the invention is designed for connection of the nozzle tothe container body by approach from the exterior of the container, andconsequently the neck 219 includes an external lip ring or flange 220,while the nozzle flange 229 carries a cooperating resilient lock ring230 designed to have an interference fit with the lip ring 229 and tosnap thereover when the nozzle is pushed home. If desired the lock ring230 may have an interior sloping surface 230' designed to aid in cammingit open during placement.

As in the case of the FIGURE 4 form of the invention, it is desirable tosecure the nozzle against any possible tendency to rotate if atight-fitting cap should be placed thereon. Here the result is achievedby non-circular interfitting parts on the main body portion 225 of thenozzle 215, and on the interior surface of the neck 219 of the containerbody 213. In the particular form shown there are molded on the exteriorof the body por tion 313, saw tooth flutes 235 designed to fit internai:saw tooth flutes 237 formed in the neck material. If the container isimpact extruded, these latter may be readily formed by properly shapingthe female die of the extru sion pair.

It will be noted that the arrangement of parts shown in FIGURES 6 to 8is adaptable to various kinds of con tainers and is especially usefulwhen the container is by its nature closed on the bottom, or in caseswhere bottom closure precedes nozzle attachment for any reason.

Another form of nozzle construction embodying the novel concepts of thisinvention appears in FIGURES 9 and 10, and is designated thereingenerally by the numeral 3%. The plastic snap-in-place nozzle is formedto include an externally threaded neck portion 301 and a body portion302, there being located between the neck and body portions a lockingring 303.

The body portion 302 is equipped with a plurality of axially directedtoothed serrations 304a which interlock with complementary serrations304b provided on the inner diameter of neck portion 305 of a metalcontainer C. It may further be seen from FIGURE 9 that the nozzle member300 has a generally radially directed flange portion 3% which bearsagainst the inner surface of a sloping breast portion 307 on thecontainer C. Additionally, the nozzle body portion 302 has a slopingshoulder portion 308 which receives a mating shoulder portion 309 on thetube neck 305.

In common with the other forms of the instant invention the nozzlemember 300 is pushed axially within the container C from the unsealedend thereof to a position of rest and firm locking assembly with thecontainer upper portion by means of the locking ring 303, matingshoulder surfaces 598 and 369, interengaging toothed serrations Nita and304b, and abutment between the radial flange 3G6 and tube breast portion$137. A rapid snap-in-place connection is achieved, and provision of theaxial flutes or serrations prevents relative rotation between the nozzle3% and container C.

The nozzle construction of FIGURE 9 may be seen to be of relativelyshorter neck length as compared with the earlier described forms of theinvention, and thus canbe used for a greater diversity of applicationsthan the forms of FIGURES 1 to 8. The relatively short length embodimentof FIGURE 9 is thereby of important application in connection with anyproduct which might pick up an objectionable color or cast from metal asit is extruded through the tube neck, and a typical usage might be withfluoride-containing dentifrices.

Certain applications may dictate the use of a plastic neck insertintegral with a body liner for the container, the liner thereby being insubstitution for an internal coating applied in fluid form to theinterior of the container for protective reasons. This form of theinvention is illustrated in FIGURE 11, and the integral insert-liner isdesignated therein generally by the numeral 400. The member 400incorporates an externally threaded neck portion 401 for receiving aclosure device 402. The nozzle is further provided with an externallocking ring 403 engageable with the upper surface of container neckportion 404, and extending in the opposite direction from the lockingring 403 is a plurality of fine toothed serrations 405 on nozzle bodyportion 406, these serrations making mating contact with complementaryserrations 407 on the container neck 404.

The nozzle-liner member 400 is additionally equipped with a radiallydirected flange portion 408 bearing against .the inner surface of thecontainer breast portion 409, and

extending axially from the flange portion 408 is liner member 410. Theliner is sized to make close hugging contact with the inner diameter ofcontainer body portion 411, and this same liner may extend essentiallycompletely toward the opposite open end of the container, preferablybeing slightly shorter than the container body so as not to create apossible interference with the crimping action at the opposite open endof the container.

The nozzle-liner member 400 of FIGURE 11 is installed in substantiallythe same manner as the preceding forms of the invention, and the nozzlemember is effectively locked by provision of the radially directedflange 408 and locking ring 403. As well, the nozzleliner member isrestrained against rotation within the container by means of the matingtoothed serations 405 and 407.

From the foregoing it can be seen that I have produced a novel containernozzle combination capable of ready assembly in a simple and practicalsnap-in fashion but which coincidentally insures that no problems fromtight caps can arise as a result of this type of assembly.

It is thought that the invention and many of its attendant advantageswill be understood from the foregoing description, and it will beapparent that various changes may be made in the form, construction andarrangement of the parts without departing from the spirit and scope ofthe invention.

I claim:

1. A container comprising an end member having an opening therein andbeing provided with a rib engaging surafce; and a passaged nozzlereceived in said opening and secured to said end member, said nozzlebeing formed in one piece of a resilient plastic material and includinga body portion insertable through the opening from the side directedtoward the container interior, a radially directed flange adjacent theinner end of said body portion, a locking rib on the periphery of saidbody portion axially spaced from said flange, said rib being of a largerdiameter than said opening and capable of being forced through theopening and of resiliently expanding to lock against the rib-engagingsurface of the end member, the length of the body of said nozzle betweensaid locking rib and said flange being slightly greater than thedistance between said rib engaging surface and the inner surface of thebreast portion of said end member thereby causing said resilient plasticmaterial between said locking rib and flange to be locked and undertension between said rib engaging surface and said inner breast surface,and matching toothed serrations on said nozzle and on an inner surfaceof said end member extending around each of them at locations such thatthe serrations mesh and slide axially relative to one another uponnozzle instal- U lation and prevent relative rotation between saidnozzle and said end member.

2. A container comprising a body, an integral end wall and an upstandingneck member providing a rib engaging surface having an opening therein;a passaged nozzle member received in said opening and secured to saidneck member, said nozzle being formed in one piece of a resilientplastic material and including a body portion insertable through theopening from the side directed toward the container interior, a radiallydirected flange adjacent the inner end of said body portion and bearingagainst said end wall of said container, a locking rib on the peripheryof said body portion axially spaced from said flange, said rib being ofa larger diameter than said opening and capable of being forced throughthe opening and of resiliently expanding to lock against said neckmember, the length of the body of said nozzle between said locking riband said flange being slightly greater than the distance between saidrib engaging surface and the inner surface of said end wall therebycausing said resilient plastic material between said locking rib andflange to be locked and under tension between said rib engaging surfaceand said inner end wall surface, and matching toothed serrations on thebody portion of said nozzle and on the inner surface of said neck memberand extending around each of them at locations such that the serrationsmesh and slide axially relative to one another upon nozzle installationand prevent relative rotation between said nozzle and said neck member.

3. A container of the character defined in claim 2, in which the neckportion has an inwardly directed flange portion bearing against thenozzle body portion and contacting said locking rib.

4. A collapsible tube comprising a tubular body; an integral end wallincluding a breast portion and an upstanding neck member terminating inan inwardly directed flange portion defining an opening and having anannular tapered surface directed toward the interior of said body; and aone-piece resilient plastic nozzle received in said opening, said nozzleincluding a tubular body portion secured within said neck member, anannular locking rib spaced from the inner end of said body portion ofgreater diameter than said opening and capable of being forced throughthe opening and of resiliently expanding to lock against the uppersurface of said neck flange, and a radial outwardly directed flange atthe inner end of said body portion snugly conforming to substantiallythe entire inner surface of said breast portion when said locking beadis locked over said neck flange, said body portion having an annulartapered surface spaced immediately below said locking rib tightlyengaged against said tapered surface of said body flange, said neckmember and body portion being provided with closely spaced, axialengageable tooth serrations between said radially outwardly directedflange and taper surface, to prevent relative rotation between said endwall and said nozzle.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 940,128 11/ 1909Childs 222-545 2,481,857 9/ 1949 Menheneott et al 222-92 2,760,691 8/1956 Henchert 222-566 2,805,006 9/ 1957 Henchert 222-566 2,815,88712/1957 Ford et al 222-107 2,907,496 10/ 1959 Carstensen 222-566 XFOREIGN PATENTS 540,574 8/1955 Belgium.

854,951 11/1960 Great Britain.

352,278 3/ 1961 Switzerland.

M. HENSON WOOD, In, Primary Examiner. RAPHAEL M. LUPO, LOUIS J. DEMBO,Examiners.

1. A CONTAINER COMPRISING AN END MEMBER HAVING AN OPENING THEREIN ANDBEING PROVIDED WITH A RIB-ENGAGING SURFACE; AND A PASSAGED NOZZLERECEIVED IN SAID OPENING AND SECURED TO SAID END MEMBER, SAID NOZZLEBEING FORMED IN ONE PIECE OF A RESILIENT PLASTIC MATERIAL AND INCLUDINGA BODY PORTION INSERTABLE THROUGH THE OPENING FROM THE SIDE DIRECTEDTOWARD THE CONTAINER INTERIOR, A RADIALLY DIRECTED FLANGE ADJACENT THEINNER END OF SAID BODY PORTION, A LOCKING RIB ON THE PERIPHERY OF SAIDBODY PORTION AXIALLY SPACED FROM SAID FLANGE, SAID RIB BEING OF A LARGERDIAMETER THAN SAID OPENING THE CAPABLE OF BEING FORCED THROUGH THEOPENING OF RESILIENTLY EXPANDING TO LOCK AGAINST THE RIB-ENGAGINGSURFACE OF THE END MEMBER, THE LENGTH OF THE BODY OF SAID NOZZLE BETWEENSAID LOCKING